A YOUNG woman accidentally killed herself by taking an overdose of paracetamol to numb the agony of earache, an inquest heard.
Rebecca Jeffs, 31, swallowed 20 tablets over 24 hours more than twice the recommended dose after complaining of a severe pain in her right ear.
The former careworker was treated in hospital for five days for the overdose but died from lung damage two days after being discharged.
Rebecca, of Crawley, West Sussex, died at her partners home in Westhoughton, Greater Manchester, on October 9 last year.
Her mother, Elizabeth Carter, told West Lancashire coroners court that Rebecca had previously suffered from abdominal pain and had sleeping problems, for which she was prescribed Zopiclone.
Dr Salil Singh, a consultant at the Royal Bolton Hospital, said when Rebecca was admitted for the paracetamol overdose he found she had also taken a double dose of ibuprofen and Zopiclone.
Doctors gave her a drug to reverse the effect of the overdose which appeared to have worked.
She was discharged with medication for the ear pain and antibiotics.
Pathologist Dr Patrick Waugh said tests showed Rebeccas lungs were damaged and she had a congested liver.
Coroner Simon Jones recorded a verdict of misadventure.
Source The Express
